Rhythm of the Heart
by YuukiZero603
Summary: Being an idol isn't always easy, sometimes you really just want to run away from it all and have a normal life. That's what she did... well, sort of.
1. Coming Home

**Hey guys! So I've started watching Jessie recently, and I am loving it! I read a few fanfictions and decided to write my own, inserting an OC of course!  
I'm only on the 2nd season of the show so if somethings seem off, I am sorry!  
As you will notice, I've set this a few years after Jessie starts being a nanny, so the children are older than we see them in season 01.  
So I hope you like it.  
~Yuuki**

* * *

Jessie Prescott woke up to her cell-phone ringing on the nightstand.

"Yeah?" She answered it with a yawn.

"Jessie!" Morgan Ross' voice exclaimed on the other end of the phone.

"Yes, sir?" She sat up.

"Just wanna give you a heads up that we're coming home today."

"Oh, okay. I'll get the kids ready." She added.

"I also wanted to tell you that we're bringing my friend's kid over to stay for a month or two whilst their parents are on tour. Is that okay with you?"

"Yeah sure, what's one more kid?" She smiled. "Boy or girl?"

"A girl. Her name is Danielle Adams, but the world knows her as Ella… the teen idol?" He added.

"Yeah, I know her! I watch her YouTube videos with Zuri every day."

"Well, we can't let people know it's really her, not even the kids. They can't keep a secret if their lives depended on it."

"So, what are we going to do?" Jessie frowned.

"She's going to disguise herself as a boy going by the name Danny." He added.

"Do you think she'll pull it off?"

"Yes. Her parents want her to have a little normality in her life, and thought this was a great way to do it. She still has an idol schedule but they've made it New York only for the next couple months and fitted the hours around school."

"School?"

"Yeah, she will be enrolling as Danny at the kids' school. Same grade as Luke."

"Oh… well, I hope she knows what she's doing."

"She's an actress. She knows how to pretend to be someone she's not."

Jessie sighed. "Alright, I will see you later, I'll prepare the kids for Danny arriving too."

"Thank you, Jessie!" Morgan hung up the phone.

Jessie flopped back into bed and checked the time on her phone. "Better get everyone up and ready." She yawned again.

Jessie went around the hall, giving all the kids' doors a good knock.

Luke came out yawning widely and stretched his arms. "Why the wakeup call, Jessie? It's Saturday." He complained.

"Your parents are coming home today." Jessie stated.

Luke's eyes lit up. "Really?!"

"Seems they're bringing one of their friend's children for a while, so be nice." She warned, knocking on Emma's door again.

Luke frowned. "Okay, I guess." He made his way to the bathroom.

Jessie sat at the kitchen table to have her coffee. _I can't believe Ella is going to be living with us!_ She grinned. _Zuri would freak if she knew._

"Jessie!"

 _Speak of the devil._

"Morning, Zuri." Jessie smiled at the eleven-year-old.

Zuri had her iPad with her and she propped it up behind the cereal Bertram laid in front of her.

"Can't that wait until after breakfast, sweetie?" Jessie asked, taking a sip of coffee.

"But it's Ella!" She whined. "It's a live broadcast."

Jessie looked over the youngest of the Ross siblings' shoulder.

 _"_ _Hey, guys! It's your girl Ella! I'm catching my next flight to the Big Apple! Be sure to grab tickets to my concerts over the next few months and I'll see all your lovely faces there!"_ The beautiful blonde girl with ocean green eyes blew a kiss to the camera.

Zuri stared at the screen. "She's gonna be here?! I have to get tickets."

Jessie stared into her coffee cup. "I'm sure your dad will be able to get some."

Zuri grinned.

"She's gonna be in New York?" Luke popped up out of nowhere.

"Yep. She's doing concerts all over the city." Zuri stated.

"Awesome. I will definitely go see her."

Jessie raised a brow. "I didn't know you were a fan."

Luke rolled his eyes. "She's pretty and an amazing dancer, I've watched all of her tutorials."

"And her fashions are to die for!" Emma walked in. "I watch her makeup tutorials."

Jessie nodded. "Me too." She admitted. "She's a multitalented super star."

"It's hard to believe that she's only fifteen." Luke remarked.

"Same age as you, Luke." Jessie stated.

"Yeah, and I'm stuck in school, whilst she tours the world." Luke huffed, sitting down.

"Well, maybe she's a little tired of it." Jessie suggested.

"Tired of what? Having the world at her feet? Getting recognised everywhere?"

"Can't even go to a public bathroom without the next headline being 'everyone wants to sit on the toilet seat that Ella placed her bottom on.'" Jessie cut in. "Restrictions on who to be around, having to act a certain way in public."

"That's true, in one of her blogs, she had said that she had to turn down her crush because of the press." Emma said. "She said she never felt so upset before that moment, because she really did like him a lot."

Jessie's face dropped. "Poor girl."

"I guess you're right." Luke picked up a piece of toast and started to lather chocolate spread over it. "I just want to be able to be on par with her dancing skills."

"You're a fantastic dancer, Luke. Don't let anyone else say different." Jessie grinned at him. "I'm sure if Ella saw your dance moves, she'd definitely ask you to join her dance team."

Luke gave a goofy smile. "You think so?"

Jessie nodded. "I'm always honest with you."

"Thanks, Jessie."

Meanwhile, sat on the Ross privet jet, were Morgan and Christina Ross, along with Danielle Adams, also known as Ella, dressed in baggy jeans and a hoodie.

The girl was looking in a mirror, rearranging strands of her short sandy blonde wig that was stuck on with a special wig glue that only came off with a special shampoo. "Feels weird, my face being free of makeup. I like it." She said in a quiet voice.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were a boy already." Christina smiled. "Sorry that you have to do this."

Danielle shook her head. "This is fine. It means that I get to be like a regular kid for once, even if it is as a boy." She looked through her bag and pulled out a pair of glasses, false lenses of course, and put them on her face. "So?" She looked to the Ross parents.

"Hardily recognise you!" Morgan clapped.

"Good." She smiled and looked out of the window. "Cause we're here." The famous Statue of Liberty came into view.


	2. Introductions

Jessie paced back and forth in the lobby waiting for the Ross parents to arrive with Danielle.

"Jessie, why so tense?" Tony, the building's door man, who had also been dating Jessie for almost two years, took her hand and squeezed it reassuringly.

"Morgan and Christina are coming home." She stated.

Tony smiled. "That's good, isn't it? I bet the kids are excited."

"They are. But their parents are bringing their friend's kid back with them to stay for a little while. I'm not sure how the others will treat him." She bit her lip.

"I'm sure they'll be fine. They're not as bratty as they were when you first came along." He chuckled.

She shrugged. "True." _He always knows how to calm me down._

The Ross' taxi pulled up outside of the building.

Danielle stepped out and looked around. "You live here?"

"Yes, we own a penthouse within this building." Christina smiled.

"Cool." Danielle returned Christina's smile. "Thanks for this."

"Like we said, we're happy for you to be here." Morgan patted the girl's shoulder and led the way into the lobby where Jessie was waiting.

"Jessie!" Christina went in for a hug. "Great to see you."

"You too, Christina. Hello, Morgan." Jessie waved. Her gaze then landed on the boy stood between them. "You must be Danny?" She held out her hand. "I'm Jessie, nanny to the Ross children."

Danielle shook Jessie's hand. "Nice to meet you." She said in the lowest, most masculine voice she could.

Jessie's eyes widened. _If Morgan hadn't told me, I wouldn't even guess that she was a girl. Never mind Ella!_ "I've informed the kids that you were coming, they're waiting for you upstairs." She smiled at her bosses.

"Let's go then." Morgan picked up Danielle's suitcase and carried it to the elevator.

Emma, Luke, Ravi and Zuri were waiting patiently for their parents in the lounge.

"I wonder what the new kid is gonna be like." Emma mused.

"I dunno, and I honestly don't really care. They're not gonna be here for long." Luke replied.

"That's mean, Luke." Zuri remarked.

Luke shrugged as the elevator _pinged,_ signalling that their parent had arrived. He stood straight.

Morgan and Christina walked out of the elevator and immediately hugged their children one by one.

"Hey, guys!"

Jessie put her hand on Danielle's shoulder, she felt the girl shake a little. "Don't worry, everything will be fine, I am you ally." She smiled.

Danielle nodded once and stepped forward, clearing her throat.

Morgan turned to her. "Oh, right! Kids this is Danny, he's going to be staying here for a little while whilst his parents are touring. Hope this is okay with you?"

Danielle gave a wave. "Hey."

"Danny, this is our eldest, Emma, then Luke, Ravi and Zuri." Christina introduced them.

"Right, well Bertram is cooking us all dinner, so why don't you guys get to know each other while we talk to Jessie, privately?" Christina grinned.

The kids nodded.

Danielle sat down on the couch awkwardly. _I've never really socialised with kids my age… how do I even start?_

"Well, I'm going to text Rosie about Ella's concert. Talk at dinner, Danny." Emma gave a smile and headed up the stairs.

Danielle cleared her throat. "I'm guessing that your sister is a fan of Ella?"

"Not as big a fan as me." Zuri piped up.

"Oh?" Danielle turned her attention to her.

Zuri sat down next to her. "I have all of her albums, I know the lyrics to her songs, I've seen all of her blogs and tutorials."

"Wow, you are a big fan." Danielle smiled.

Zuri stared a little. "Yeah!" _He looks pretty when he smiles… boys aren't supposed to be pretty._

Luke looked to Ravi.

Ravi cleared his throat. "Danny… do you like reptiles?"

Danielle raised a brow. "Like lizards and stuff? I don't dislike them."

Ravi's eyes lit up a little. "Do you wanna meet my pet, Mrs Kipling? She's an Asian Water Monitor lizard."

Danielle shrugged. "Sure." She stood up. "Where is she?"

"Follow me." Ravi grinned.

Ravi opened his bedroom door. "Don't be afraid, okay?"

"I'm fine."

Behind the door was a gigantic cage with pipes and ladders. At the bottom of the cage was a seven-foot lizard.

"Wow… she's stunning." Danielle breathed.

Ravi grinned proudly. "I'll let her out okay, she won't hurt you."

Danielle nodded.

Mrs Kipling went up to Danielle and sniffed around her feet and jeans.

"I think she likes you." Luke stated, making Danielle jump. "Easy! Jeez." He held up his hands.

Danielle sighed, rolling her eyes, making her way out of the bedroom. "Don't creep up on people like that." She said.

Luke chuckled. "My bad." He held up her suitcase. "I brought this up for you." He stated.

"Oh… thanks." She took it from him.

"I believe that you're staying in the guest bedroom next to Jessie's. I'll show you." He waved his hand for her to follow him.

They entered the guest bedroom and she put her suitcase in the corner of the room.

"Thanks, Luke, was it?" She turned to him.

"Yeah." He sat on the bed casually.

"So… you're the one I'll be in classes with at school?" Danielle mused.

"What?" Luke's eyes snapped to her.

"I'll be going to school with you whilst I'm staying here." She explained.

Luke frowned. "First time I heard."

"Well, now you know."

"Kids!" Jessie called up the stairs. "Dinner!"

Luke looked to Danielle. "You heard her, let's go." He stood up and walked out of the room.

Danielle exhaled. _That was the first time I had a slight conversation with a boy my age…_ She blushed.

"Coming?" Luke peeped his head through the door. He noticed a pink dusting across the nerd's cheeks. _Weirdo._

Danielle followed him out and down the staircase, into the dining room. _This stay is going to be full of firsts for me._


	3. Spider

Everyone sat around the table to eat.

Jessie and Zuri sat at either side of Danielle.

Zuri was watching Ella videos.

Danielle felt weird seeing herself on the screen, she never watched her own videos after they were aired as a personal rule.

"Zuri, it's dinner time." Jessie said with a frown.

"But this makeup is really pretty." Zuri replied, holding her iPad up to show Jessie.

"Ooh that is good!" Jessie's eyes sparkled. "I love the peacock look with the eyeshadow."

Danielle took a bite of pasta, feeling self-conscious.

"Emma, is that homework, sweetie?" Christina asked her eldest.

Emma nodded with a sigh, slamming the math text book shut in front of her. "I don't understand most of this, and I need to learn it by next week's exam."

Danielle glanced over at the question sheet in front of Emma. "Oh, those ones are simple when you figure out the right method." She stated, she reached over and took the sheet and Emma's pencil. "Watch…" She flipped the sheet over to the blank side and started to solve the first equation.

"I'm a year above you, how would you know?"

"I'm just good with numbers." She responded, finishing answering the first question on Emma's work sheet. "Follow this method and you'll never get the answer wrong." She pushed the sheet back towards Emma.

Emma stared at the sheet in awe. "This is awesome! Thank you!" She smiled widely.

"No problem. If you need any more help with your math, come to me."

"I will!" Emma put the sheet down and began to eat her food.

Danielle got ready for bed. She went into her en-suite bathroom and clicked the light on before letting out a scream.

Luke jumped out of bed, hearing a high-pitched scream. _Mrs Kipling got into Jessie's room, again didn't she?_ He grumbled and walked out of the room, to see Danielle backing out of hers. "Danny?"

Danielle looked to see Luke standing in the hallway in his pyjama pants. "Sp… spider!" She pointed towards her room. _Why did it have to be him?!_

"A spider?" He raised a brow. "Dude, you screamed like a girl because of a spider?"

"Please get rid of it?" She begged. "It's bigger than my foot!"

Luke laughed. "Fine." He went into her room. "Where is it?"

"Up in the top corner of the bathroom." She explained.

He went into the bathroom. "Whoa! That _is_ a big one." He stepped upon the toilet seat.

She watched as he reached up to catch it. _He's so brave… or stupid._

"Caught him!" He stepped down with the spider in his hand. "Open the window."

She nodded and cracked open the bedroom window. "Thank you." She breathed.

"No problem." He smiled, throwing the spider outside. "Next time, just send Mrs Kipling in, she'll enjoy the snack." He smirked, looking at her.

Her eyes glittered a little in the moonlight, shadows of her short hair cast over her flawless skin.

 _Looking closer, he's almost as pretty as a girl!_ He swallowed, shaking his head a little.

Danielle didn't notice Luke looking at her. She dropped down onto her bed. She gave a shudder, still thinking of the spider. "I hate creepy crawlies." She confessed.

"You are a really weird guy. You and Ravi are sure to become best of friends." Luke remarked.

Danielle met his gaze and raised a brow. "What?"

"Well, you're both nerds, you like lizards and such and you both scream like girls." He laughed.

Danielle looked away, hoping to hide her reddening cheeks.

"Well, good night." He left the room, closing the door behind him. _Without those glasses… that dork could win over all my ladies…_

Danielle covered her burning face with her hands and flopped back into the covers. _That was so embarrassing!_

She checked her clock on her nightstand. _I need to upload a vlog… I have an album signing tomorrow._ She sighed and went into the bathroom to shower and take off her wig.

She dried off and put on an oversized t-shirt and pants for bed. She threw a bathrobe over them and tied her wet hair into a bun.

She turned on her lamp and sat straight in her bed with her phone. _Okay, just a quick one._ She cleared her throat before clicking the live video button on her vlog. She clicked record.

"Hey guys! So here I am, in New York City! It's so exciting to be here. Also, the shower in this hotel is a-mazing!" She grinned. She reached to her nightstand and picked up a copy of her album. "Remember guys, I'll be at Times Square for an exclusive signing of my album. Each copy comes with a free _I May Be a Little Insane_ T-shirt! They are utterly fabulous!" She thought for a moment. "Oh, yeah! You guys may get lucky and end up on my next vlog as I will be filming it at some point during the signing, so make sure you come with a smile." She checked the time again. "Okay, I'm gonna sign off, I need my beauty sleep so I'm refreshed to see all your wonderful faces tomorrow. Good night." She blew a kiss to the phone and hit the stop button.

She exhaled. "That went well." She shrugged off the bathrobe and dried her hair before putting a wig cap over it, just in case she had to quickly throw her wig on. _Maybe I should have just cut my hair off and worn a wig for the Ella in me._ She sighed and got into bed, reading the comments on her recent live.

 _"_ _We love you, Ella!"_

 _"_ _Can't wait to see you!"_

 _"_ _Your new album is going to go platinum!"_

She rolled her eyes. "I don't care about that… I just want people to enjoy my music." She mumbled. She locked her phone and turned over to go to sleep.

Danielle woke up early the next morning and packed her bag ready for Times Square. She sent a text her manager, asking him to send a cab to the building. _Okay, you can do this…_ She opened her door quietly and slipped out.

She crept down the stairs and looked to the elevator. _Too noisy._ She took the stairs down to the lobby. She was lucky that Tony the doorman was asleep, so she ran past him and outside without being noticed. She jumped into the cab. "Thanks, I'm Danielle, my uncle booked you to take me to Times Square." She added.

The cab driver nodded and drove.

Danielle pulled off her wig and the wig cap, shoving it into her bag. _It's gonna be a long day._


	4. T-Shirt

**Hey guys! Just quick note to say that I am in need of song ideas for Ella! I'm no good at writing lyrics so any Disney Channel style songs you'd like her to sing? I'm open to others as long as they're quite cheerful! (like Victorious etc) Just leave any suggestions in the reviews! I hope you're enjoying this so far. ~Yuuki**

* * *

"Jessie! Please can we go?" Zuri jumped up and down in front of their nanny in the kitchen.

"Go where?"

"Times Square, of course!" Emma clutched her handbag to her chest. "Ella is going to be there, doing an album signing!"

"Oh?" _Danielle didn't think to tell me this?!_

The Ross Parents had gone away again, so it was Jessie who had to help Danielle keep her little secret.

Luke yawned as he entered the kitchen. "What's that about Ella?"

"Oh, she's in Times Square." Zuri stated.

"What? Now?" He asked, his eyes sparkled.

"Yeah, look." She shoved her iPad in his face, Ella's current live vlog playing.

" _Wow, guys! These t-shirts are flying away!" She pulled at the oversized 'I May be a Little Insane' t-shirt she was sporting. "Be quick to come and grab one along with your signed CD!"_

"Okay, I'm going!" Luke raced up to his room to change.

Jessie shrugged. "I guess we're going to Times Square." She sighed.

The girls gave a high-pitched squeal.

"What about Danny?" Emma asked.

Jessie bit her lip. "When I went to check on him, he said he wasn't feeling great, jet lag. I'm just going to let him sleep today so he's better for school tomorrow." She lied.

"Oh, okay." The two went to get ready.

Jessie exhaled. _This kid is gonna end up getting me killed._

Danielle sighed, looking at the dispelling crowd.

"Only a few dozen more, Ella!" Her manager called.

"Have we got enough t-shirts?"

"Not sure, but I do have vouchers so if they can't get it here they can go get one when they're released." He walked over and put the vouchers in the bottom of the t-shirt box.

Danielle nodded. She looked up at the next fan, a girl who was about her age. "Hey! Nice to meet you." She gave a smile.

"Oh my gosh! You're even more beautiful in person!" The girl said, holding out her CD.

"Who should I address this to?" Danielle uncapped her sharpie.

"Diana." She said with a giggle.

Danielle quickly wrote a message and signed on the cover booklet before sliding it back into the case. "Here you go, and we only have medium or large t-shirts left, I can give you a voucher for one when they're released in store if you'd like."

"A voucher is good. Thank you, Ella!"

Danielle nodded, digging into the box for the vouchers.

After another half an hour she was down to two t-shirts, both female fit and size medium.

"Next!" Danielle called. She looked up to meet a pair of chocolate coloured eyes.

"Hey!" Luke smiled down at the sitting girl, standing with Zuri, Emma and Jessie.

"Hello, you guys together?" She asked, trying to sound as casual as possible.

"Oh my gosh! I love your shoes!" Emma squeaked out.

Danielle met her gaze. "Thanks, I got them from a thrift shop."

"Really?! Who'd throw out those beauties?!"

Danielle shrugged. "Their loss is my gain." She took the CD from Zuri. "Just one CD?" She asked.

Jessie nodded.

"We only have two women fitted t-shirts here, in a size medium… but you can take a voucher and get one at the store this week."

"I can fit into a medium!" Emma grinned.

Danielle handed her a t-shirt, then looked at Jessie. "You?" She held out the last girl's t-shirt.

"Thank you!" Jessie grinned.

Danielle handed Zuri a voucher. "Sorry, kid."

Zuri hadn't stopped staring at the girl since they arrived. "It's okay! I got to meet you."

Danielle grinned. "Well it's very nice to meet you… um…?"

"Zuri Ross!" She shook the older girl's hand. "I am you're biggest fan!"

"I bet." Danielle looked to Luke who looked a bit bummed. She looked down at the t-shirt she was wearing, it was a men's medium fit. "Here." She pulled the t-shirt over her head, wearing a vest top underneath. "It may stink but you can have it." She held it out to him.

His eyes widened. "Really?"

She nodded. "I hate seeing people being left out if I can prevent it."

He took the t-shirt. _Ella wore this!_ "Thank you." He smiled.

She stood back and peeked into the box. "I'm glad you're the last of them, I'm all out of t-shirts and vouchers." She giggled.

"Aren't we lucky, eh?" Jessie smiled, meeting Danielle's gaze.

"I guess you are." She looked towards her workmates. "All done, guys! Well done!" She clapped her hands.

"Well done, Ella!" Her manager called to her.

"Ella?"

Danielle turned to see the Jessie and the Ross kids still standing there. "Can I help you?" She asked Zuri.

"Can I have a photo taken with you?" She waved her camera in the air.

"Um… sure." Danielle hopped over the table between them. "Hey, Richard! Can you come and take a photo of us?" She called to the nearest crew member.

The man nodded and walked over to them, taking the camera from her.

"Come on, all in." She hooked Luke's arm and pulled him close.

This caused the prankster to blush like a rose. _I'm sure glad that I showered today!_

Jessie glanced over at Luke. _If only you knew._

Richard took the photo and gave the camera back to Danielle. "Great work, Ella." He saluted and went to continue his work of packing the banners and signs away.

"Well, I've gotta go and help them out. Nice meeting you guys. Hopefully I'll see you at one of my concerts." Danielle flashed a smile and gathered her things before heading off to the tour bus.

Jessie sighed. "Okay, let's go, kids!"

Luke grinned like an idiot. "Wait until the guys see this!"

"Are you gonna wash it?" Emma asked.

"No way! Ella's essence is on this shirt! I can't wash it away."

"So… it's gonna stink like everything else in your room?" Zuri pinched her nose.

"No, I'll keep it in a special place."

"Gonna frame it?" Jessie laughed.

"That's a good idea, but maybe not." He led the way home.

Meanwhile, Danielle had gotten to her room in the penthouse, surprisingly unnoticed by Bertram or Ravi. She had her wig on loosely, and needed to secure it before everybody got home.

Ten minutes later, she heard a knock on her bedroom door. Thankfully she had managed to apply the wig in the nick of time.

She opened her door to find Zuri on the other side of it, jumping up and down. "What? Got something in your pants?" She asked with a raised brow.

"You just missed her!"

"Who?"

"Ella!" She squealed.

"Oh, was there a vlog or something?" Danielle yawned. Everything ached from all the sneaking around and she was only on her first day.

"She was in Times Square doing autographs. She was so beautiful and nice." Zuri's eyes practically sparkled.

"Awwh bummer." Danielle tried to act disappointed.

"I'm sure she'll do more because she's in New York for a while." Zuri tried to comfort Danielle.

"I'm sure she will."

"Danny! Look what I got!" Luke appeared beside Zuri holding up his t-shirt.

Danielle shrugged. "It's a t-shirt." She felt her cheeks heating up.

"Not just any t-shirt! The dancing goddess wore this herself! This is sure to be my lucky charm at the dance contest in just over a week." He hugged the t-shirt to his chest.

 _He's a big fan, huh?_ "Well, keep it safe." She smiled.

Luke stared at her for a moment. _That smile…_ He blinked and nodded. "Sure will!" He went off to his room.

Zuri looked up at Danielle. "Have you gotten over your jet lag?" She asked her.

Danielle nodded. "Yeah, most of it. Just a bit groggy." At that moment her stomach gave a monstrous growl. "And a little hungry." She laughed.

"Come on, we can ask Jessie to make us a snack." Zuri dragged Danielle downstairs by her hand.

They got down stairs to see Jessie sat on the couch with Emma, watching videos on Emma's iPad.

"I think you should go for this look for your date with Tony." Emma pointed to the screen.

"But that looks so complicated, I'll never be able to pull it off." Jessie sighed.

Zuri went over to them and peered over at the video they were watching. "Ella does step by steps. It'll look really pretty on you, Jessie."

"Thanks, Zuri. But I'll probably take two hours following the steps that take her twenty minutes." Jessie whined.

"Practice, your date is tomorrow, why don't you do a trial run tonight?" Emma added.

"Alright, but if it doesn't turn out well I'm going with something simpler." She stated.

"That's the spirit!" Zuri clapped. "Jessie, could you please make us a snack? I'm hungry and Danny hasn't eaten anything yet."

"Of course, what do you like to eat Danny?" Jessie looked to Danielle.

"Anything really." She shrugged.

"Okay then, how about we go to the park and grab something at the Empire Skate Building?"

Danielle frowned. _The where?_

"Yay!" Zuri grinned.

"Okay, I'll go get Luke and Ravi." She clapped her hands together before going up the stairs.

"I'm going to grab something from my room." Danielle stated before running up to her room.

Danielle looked through her bag and found a notebook and pen. _I need these lyrics done by next week._ She sighed, putting them into her inside pocket and zipping it up. She picked up her phone and wireless headphones before heading out.

"Hey, Max, Jessie is taking me and my siblings to the park, wanna meet up and practise for next week?" Luke was on his phone outside of his bedroom door.

Danielle pushed her glasses up her nose. "Ready?" She asked him casually.

He nodded. "Yeah, c'mon." He headed downstairs.


	5. Lyrics in the Mud

After eating at the park restaurant, Danielle found a spot away from the others where she could sit a write in her notebook. _Let's see…_ She turned up the music on her phone and hummed to the melody quietly, writing lyrics randomly as she thought of them.

She was so into the music that she didn't sense that someone approached her.

"Look at this dork." A tall, muscular, blonde boy approached her. "Hey!" He snatched the notebook from her hands.

She looked up, startled. "What? Give that back to me!" She jumped up.

He flicked through the pages. "Poems? What girly handwriting!" He laughed.

"I said, give it back!" She reached up to take it.

He held it higher. "Or what? Gonna tell your mommy?"

Danielle gritted her teeth. _I could knock ten bells out of this guy but that'll draw too much unwanted attention to myself._ "Just hand it over!" She whined a little.

"Alright…" He smirked and dropped it. "Here."

The note book landed in a muddy puddle.

Danielle quickly knelt to get it.

"See you in school, dork."

Ravi turned just in time to see the bully kick some muddy water into Danielle's face before walking away. "Zuri, come quick!" He made his way to his new friend, his younger sister following him.

 _Oh no, no, no!_ Danielle attempted to peal the wet pages apart. "All my lyrics…" She bit her trembling lip.

"Danny?" Ravi knelt beside her. "What did he do to you?"

"Nothing…" She sniffled a little.

"I saw him kick dirt into your face." He argued.

She met his gaze, her eyes rimmed with tears. "I'm alright… he just ruined something important to me." She held up the soaked and muddy notebook.

Zuri took off Danielle's glasses and gave them a wipe with Ravi's shirt. "Let's go and tell Jessie." She handed them back before taking her hand.

Danielle stood up and followed them to the bench where Jessie was sitting with Emma.

"Jessie!" Zuri ran up to her nanny. "Look what a big bully did to Danny!" She pointed to the person in question.

Jessie jumped up. "Oh, Danny." She took out a packet of baby wipes and began to clean the mud off Danielle's face.

"I'm alright." She said.

Emma sighed. "Who did it?"

"I dunno who he was." She sat down beside them. "Just some random boy. He looked about our age."

"Danny, let me see your notebook." Ravi held out his hand.

She did so. "Even if I dry it out, the ink would've probably bled." Her voice threatened to break. There was over six months' worth of lyrics in that notebook.

He examined it carefully. "I might be able to fix this." He confirmed.

Danielle's eyes lit up. "Really?"

"Well. I'll be able to make a new, undamaged one with a copy of its contents at least. I'll just need to fire up my 3D printer." He smiled, seeing his new friend's expression change from upset to truly relieved in moments.

"That's really nice of you Ravi." Jessie grinned, proud of the kind-hearted boy.

"Well, considering he's now technically one of us, it's only right that I look out for my new temporary brother." He smiled.

A soft smile graced Danielle's lips. "I'd be really grateful."

Ravi looked away. _Why did my tummy go flip-flop?_ "It'll be no problem."

They heard cheering from near the band stand, they looked over to see Luke and his crew of dancers putting on a little show.

"There he goes again, showing off his charisma and athletic skills." Ravi sighed.

Danielle watched the freckled boy as he wowed the crowd with his routine of somersaults and steps. "He's not half bad." She remarked. _I recognise some of these steps._

Jessie looked at the idols face. _I'm sure Luke would love to hear that._ She smirked a little.

Danielle's ears picked up the beat he was dancing too. It was one of her songs. She realised that his dance was a twist to the steps she had posted in a tutorial video a month before.

The dance routine ended and everybody clapped for the group of boys.

"Thank you everybody, I hope we will have your support next Tuesday!" Luke called out to the crowd. He scanned the people and his eyes landed on Jessie and his siblings, his eyes narrowed when they landed on Danielle. _Why's he covered in mud?_ He jumped off their makeshift stage and walked over to them. "What did you think guys?" He asked.

"You were fantastic, Luke." Jessie clapped her hands happily.

Luke smiled smugly. He looked to Danielle again. "Did you fall over or something?"

"Yeah, something like that." She replied, scratching the back of her neck nervously. _Great, now he's gonna think I'm a clutz!_

"Well, maybe we should head back so you can wash up." Ravi cut in.

Danielle nodded. "Sounds good."

"Okay, let's go." Jessie put her arm around Danielle supportively. "Why didn't you tell him about the bully?" She whispered when Luke was further in front.

"He probably already thinks I'm a loser anyway. It doesn't matter. I'd rather people, who don't know, think I tripped, it's better than saying that a random boy bullied me." She added.

Jessie sighed, patting Danielle's back. "Well, Ravi has taken a shine to you." She smiled slightly.

"He's a nice guy." Danielle agreed. "By the way, Jessie. I can do your make-up tomorrow, if you'd like?" She looked up at her nanny.

Jessie's eyes almost sparkled. "Really?"

Danielle nodded. "I mean, who better to create _my_ look on you than myself?"

"You're the best, Danny!" She hugged her new charge. _This girl isn't some stuck up teen pop star… she's just a girl living her dream, but still wants to be a kid._ "But seriously, tell me when you have _Ella_ business, so I can figure out what to tell the others." She added on a serious note.

Danielle made an 'O' with her mouth. "Sorry about that." She let out a giggle.

Luke looked over his shoulder to see the nerd talking to his nanny. He spotted them both smiling widely at each other. "Hey, Danny, stop hitting on my lady!" He called.

Danielle frowned, looking from a smirking Luke to a scowling Jessie. "What?"

"You see, Danny. Jessie is my girl." He went over and put an arm around Jessie's shoulders.

"Luke… how many times? No way!" Jessie pinched his arm hard, causing him to jump in pain. "Find someone your own age." She strutted, off taking Zuri's hand and pulling her along.

Danielle rolled her eyes. _You have as much chance with Jessie as I have of remaining sane whilst living here._ She continued to follow Jessie to the penthouse.

Later that evening, Danielle was sat strumming her guitar, singing in barely a whisper to herself. " _All that we love and hold so dear / Could disappear one day without warning / We fear if we get too close to it / We'll lose it all in a heartbeat._ " She quickly wrote the lyrics underneath the notes on the music sheet.

There was a brisk knock on her door causing her to jump. She quickly shoved her sheet music underneath her pillow and pulled out a random book full of music for learners. She cleared her throat. "Come in!" She called.

Ravi opened the door and walked in. "I think I got all of it, but you might have to check." He held out a brand-new, red leather-bound notebook. "I figured 3D printing the whole book would be difficult so I bought you a new one and scanned the pages and printed them into this."

"Ravi…" She breathed, taking the book from him, and flicking through the pages. "It's perfect… it's all in here…" She met his gaze. "Thank you, from the bottom of my heart!" She couldn't keep the smile from her face as she hugged the book to her chest. "I don't know how you managed to save everything but you are amazing."

Ravi blushed like a rose. "I'm just happy I was able to do this for you. You looked so upset and I didn't like seeing that." He sat on her bed. "I get bullied a bit at school too, because I'm different. So, if you ever feel like you need a friend, I'll be there to support you."

Danielle nodded. "And I'll be there for you too."

He held out his hand. "Friends?"

She grinned. "Of course." She shook his hand.

"I'll let you continue what you were up to then, see you at dinner." He got up and left her room, closing the door behind him. He felt his heart beat against his ribs. _Why was I so nervous?! He's another boy that I hardly know._ He took a deep breath and headed into his room.

* * *

 **Song insert credit: Closer (Naruto cover) by Amanda Lee (AmaLee) I just love her covers and voice, so I may be inserting more of her songs into this story.**


	6. Rivalry

Danielle walked into the kitchen for breakfast, wearing straight fit black jeans and a white, men's fit, t-shirt.

"Wow, Danny, you look pretty cool!" Emma grinned.

Danielle smiled in return and sat down to put on her black converse high-top shoes on. "Thanks." She mumbled as she sat up straight.

Luke walked in and slumped onto his chair. "Why does it have to be Monday?" He moaned.

"Maybe because yesterday was Sunday and tomorrow is Tuesday." Danielle replied, pouring herself some coco-pops.

"Oh, funny." He said, sarcastically before looking up at her and dropped his spoon. "Why do you look good?"

"What?" Danielle raised an eyebrow.

"Don't go stealing all of my girls!"

Danielle shared a look with Emma.

"Luke, are you scared he's gonna be more popular than you?" Emma giggled.

Danielle snorted. "Like that's gonna happen. I'm a nerd remember." She tapped her glasses. "And you're cool." She waved her hand at him.

Ravi sat down next to Luke. "Are you nervous about your first day, Danny?" He asked Danielle.

Danielle swallowed. "Is it obvious?"

Ravi shook his head. "Apart from the fact that you're drumming your fingers on the table and eating really quickly."

Danielle closed her hand into a fist to quit finger tapping. "What if that guy is in my year? Or worse, in my class?" She hissed.

Ravi sighed. "You'll be fine. Luke's in your classes, he can look out for you." He smiled.

Danielle stared at her empty bowl.

"What are you guys going on about?" Luke frowned.

Danielle cleared her throat. "Nothing, I'm gonna go and wash up quickly." She was up and out of the kitchen before Luke could reply.

"What's with that dork?" He wondered aloud.

Jessie sighed. "Just keep an eye on him, Luke." She warned.

"If I must." He sighed before standing up. "Bus will be here soon."

Danielle walked with Luke and Ravi to their lockers. She felt eyes watching her as soon as she got onto the school bus. She kept her head down.

"Danny, just don't make eye contact and you'll be fine." Ravi reassured her, in his own fashion.

"Thanks for the tip, Ravi." She unzipped her black hoodie and put it into her locker, along with her backpack. She grabbed her first lot of text books before closing the door.

"Ooh, who's that cutie?" A group of cheerleaders walked by them.

Luke ran his hand through his curls and smiled at them. "Hello, ladies."

Danielle looked around.

"Not you, Ross. Him." A brunette pointed to Danielle. "I bet under those nerdy glasses he's a real looker."

Danielle raised a brow.

Luke turned to look at his new housemate. "Well, this is Danny Adams, he's staying with us for a while." He said, shooting glares at the blonde. _I warned you, dork!_

Danielle raised her hand. "Hey."

"Cute and shy! OMG!" The girls squealed.

The bell sounded, signalling the beginning of homeroom.

"See you later, Danny." They blew kisses and walked off giggling.

Danielle stood there, a little shocked.

Luke was grinding his teeth. "Keep your distance from me, Adams." He huffed and walked off. _Who does that dork think he is?!_

Danielle bit her lip. _Why did that sting so much?_ "See you later, Ravi." She forced a smile and went the same way as Luke did, since he was in her homeroom.

"Class, we have a new transfer student all the way from LA. Meet Danny Adams." The teacher signalled for Danielle to enter the classroom.

Danielle walked in and stood at the front desk. "Hi, nice to meet you." She said in a low voice.

"Okay, Danny. Why don't you sit behind Luke?" The teacher smiled.

Danielle did as she was told and sat in the back of the class. She looked around. _Thank goodness, that bully doesn't seem to be here._ She exhaled and waited for homeroom to be over. She looked at her timetable. _Ugh… maths and history back to back? I may be good with numbers, but it isn't my favourite subject._

"Hey!" Someone whispered from beside her.

She looked to see a girl with russet coloured hair and a cute button nose. "Yes?"

"If you have maths next, I can show you the way." She smiled sweetly.

Danielle returned her smile with a dazzling one of her own. "I'd really appreciate that."

"I'm Melissa, by the way." She held out her hand.

Danielle shook it. "Nice to meet you."

Luke looked over his shoulder to see the two chatting. _Melissa is… like the prettiest girl in the year. Why is she bothering with him?!_

The bell rang for first period.

"Come on, Danny." Melissa stood up.

Danielle nodded and followed her out. "Thanks for doing this for me, Melissa."

"No problem. It's all cool. I know what it's like being the new kid." She added. "You can sit with me, if you'd like."

"That'll be great." _This feels nice, having a real conversation with a girl my own age! Even though she thinks I'm a boy, I can't help but wonder if this is what it feels to have a best friend?_ Danielle tried to suppress a goofy smile.

"How are you liking New York?" She asked casually.

Danielle shrugged. "I haven't seen much of it, to be honest."

"Well… maybe we can hang out sometime and I can show you around." Melissa's cheeks were dusted with pink.

 _Oh no, is she trying to ask me out for a date?_ "Um… you're beautiful but I'm really not looking for anything like that right now…" Danielle scratched the back of her neck nervously.

Melissa let out a giggle. "As friends silly! Do I look like the type to jump on the new guy in school after only knowing him a few hours?" She patted Danielle's shoulders. "But I thank you for the beautiful comment." She pinched Danielle's cheek. "You're sweet."

Luke wasn't far from them, shooting daggers at Danielle. "He's slicker than I thought." He mumbled. _I thought he was just a nerd with a nice face, but seems he has a way with words around the girls._ He picked up pace and walked beside the blonde. "So, making friends I see." He stated.

Danielle shot him a glare that nearly winded him. "You know, when you said, 'keep your distance' it works both ways." She snapped. _I can't believe I was beginning to see this jerk as a friend._

Luke was a bit taken aback. For some reason, it hurt.

Danielle walked ahead into the classroom.

"Danny, this way." Melissa grabbed her arm and pulled her to the shared table. "I don't normally share with anyone.

"So… I guess I'm lucky." Danielle winked. _Why did I do that?_

Melissa grinned. "Yeah, I guess."

Luke sat across the class from the pair. He watched as she helped her through the problem sheet. He looked to his desk partner, and best friend, Max. He was struggling with one of the problems. "Why don't you ask Danny for help? He's good with numbers." He said.

"The new kid?" He looked over to see Danielle and Melissa laughing together. "Melissa seems to have taken a shine to him." He raised his brow. "Maybe I could weave my way into her circle if I befriend him." He smirked.

Luke stared at his friend. _He has a point._

Max stood up. "Hey, Danny?" He called over.

Danielle looked up to see Luke's dancing friend waving her over. "Luke said you're good at this stuff, could you help me out?"

Luke lowered his head.

Danielle stood up and went over to them and sat backwards on the chair in front of their table. "What do you need help with?" She smiled slightly.

"Um… I'm just finding it hard to follow." Max said.

"Oh… it's pretty straight forward…" She began to show Max how to easily solve the problems.

After a few minutes, Max finally understood. "This is awesome, thanks." He smiled at Danielle.

"No problem." She stood up.

"Bradley, you're late." The teacher sighed from the front.

"Sorry teach, I missed the bus."

Danielle eyes widened as she looked over her shoulder. _Damn it's him!_

The same bully from the park approached her. "Hey, runt, that's my seat." He spat.

Danielle stepped sideways. "Apologies." She breathed before heading back to her chair. _Seems he doesn't recognise me. Good._

"Don't let him bother you, he's just a typical jack-ass." Melissa whispered.

Danielle nodded. "I figured."


	7. I Can take you all'

Danielle found Ravi at lunch.

"Hey, Danny." Ravi smiled widely when he saw her.

"Ravi!" Danielle couldn't help but return the smile. "I just need to grab my lunch then we'll find somewhere?"

Ravi nodded. "How has your day been so far?"

Danielle rolled her eyes. "It's school, what do you expect?" She laughed.

"Fair enough. But have you seen that boy?" Ravi added in a whisper.

Danielle bit her lip. "He doesn't seem to remember me."

"Well, that's good, right?"

Danielle nodded. "So far, yeah." She opened her locker and put her books away before grabbing the boxed lunch that Jessie had made for her. "Let's go."

"I normally buy my lunch. You don't mind terribly about going into the cafeteria, do you?"

Danielle shrugged. "No skin off my nose. I'll find a table to wait for you."

He nodded. "Sounds like a plan." He went to join the dinner queue.

Danielle found a lonely table in the far corner of the hall. She sat down and began to unpack her lunch. She took out her phone and checked her social media. She scrolled through comments and messages as she ate her chicken salad wrap.

 _Ella, your new album is insane! I can't wait till your upcoming concerts, I will be at every one of them! – Kitty Couture_

Danielle thought for a second. _Didn't Jessie say that Emma uses that as her online alias?_ She smiled. _It's fun, getting to know my fans from a different view point._ She clicked the reply button.

 _I'm so glad that you're enjoying my album, it means a lot coming from you, Kitty. Stay cool, I can't wait to see you at my concerts! – Ella_

She hit send. _I'm gonna hear about it when I see her._

Ravi arrived and sat in front of her. "Are you okay?" He asked.

Danielle nodded. "Yeah, I'm good." She took a bite.

Melissa walked into the cafeteria and looked around. She spotted the new kid sitting with Ravi. She smiled and headed over. "Can I join you guys?"

Danielle looked up and gave a soft smile. "Of course."

Ravi looked from Danielle to Melissa. "Do you want me to move?"

Danielle frowned. "Why should you?"

"Because… you're one of the cool kids now." Ravi stood up.

Melissa giggled, sitting next to Danielle. "Sit down, silly. Danny is your friend, right? Don't let me get in the way."

Ravi sat back down. "Thanks."

"What you got there? Chicken?" Melissa asked Danielle curiously.

Danielle nodded. "It's not bad, considering my new nanny made it."

"Jessie makes good box lunches." Ravi piped up.

"Yeah, she included all of my favourites. Even my mint and chocolate milkshake." She shook the bottle.

"Sounds yummy." Melissa stated.

"Wanna try some?" Danielle offered the bottle to her.

Melissa swallowed her food and nodded. "Thanks." She took a small sip. "Ooh, refreshing!" She grinned.

"I'll bring you some, tomorrow." Danielle smiled at her.

Melissa blushed slightly. "Thanks. Do you have English lit after this?" She asked.

Danielle nodded. "Could I stick with you?"

Melissa laughed. "Sure."

Ravi looked between the two. _Danny seems to be fitting in just fine._

"Hey, Danny!" Max sat beside Ravi.

Danielle looked to him. "Hey?"

"Thank you for this morning, for once, math was easy." He added.

Luke sat at Melissa's other side.

"Anything is easy once you know the basics. I mean, you can't pull of a handspring if you can't do a simple handstand, right?" She stated.

Max nodded. "You're right. You're into gymnastics?"

Danielle shrugged. "Sorta."

"Cool. It's key to be flexible when doing break dancing."

"Yeah, you don't wanna 'break' anything, right?" Danielle smirked.

Max laughed. "Right!" _This nerd is actually pretty cool._

Luke ate his burger, not saying a word.

Ravi looked over to his brother. _Quit letting your pride get in the way of a marvellous friendship!_

"Oh, lookie here."

The group looked up to see Bradley loomed over them with a group of friends.

Danielle met Ravi's gaze. She gave a small nod. _I'm fine._

Bradley scanned the group and his eyes landed on Danielle. "Ah, it's the girly from the park, did you enjoy your mud bath?"

Danielle ignored his taunts, her hand curling into fists. _At least I don't have my music with me this time._

"Isn't it a bit immature to bully the new guy, Brad?" Max said.

Luke frowned. _Mud bath? Did he push Danny yesterday?_

"Awwh but it is oh so fun! Especially when they look like they're gonna cry." Bradley laughed. "Now, you losers move from our table and we'll leave it at that."

Ravi moved to stand.

"Ravi, don't move." Danielle muttered.

Ravi looked to her. _Is this guy insane?_ He settled back down.

Bradley snickered. "You've got nerve, new boy."

"Tell me, why should we move when you're being an arrogant ass?" Danielle raised her brow. "This table doesn't belong to you, I don't see your name anywhere."

Luke shared a look with Ravi. _This dork is going to get himself beaten up._

Bradley smirked. "True." He looked to Ravi. "Move."

"Stay!" Danielle snapped at Ravi, who began to stand up again. "Finish your lunch, if this ape wants to sit here, he's gotta wait in line."

Bradley's eyes narrowed onto Danielle. "Alright, then I'll make him move." He grabbed Ravi by the shirt and picked him up off his chair.

Danielle and Luke jumped to their feet.

"Leave my brother alone!" Luke yelled.

Bradley let out a laugh. "You don't scare me, Ross."

Danielle removed her glasses and gave them to Melissa. "Let him go!" She gracefully swung over the table between them.

"Or what? Gonna cry?" Bradley held Ravi higher as he squirmed.

 _So much for keeping a low profile… I had to open my big mouth!_ "No, but I'm sure you will if you don't release him within three seconds." She looked around to see his goons surrounding her. "One… two… three!" She planted her fist into his stomach, causing him to drop Ravi. "That's for my notebook…" She elbowed his back, causing him to face plant the floor. "And that's for Ravi."

Her friends stared at her.

Max dropped his fork. "Nice…" He breathed.

Danielle looked around at Bradley's goons. "Who's next? I can take you all…" She breathed. Her mind went blank, completely oblivious to her surroundings. The only thing she focused on were the guys around her… particularly the guy throwing a right hook to her face. She ducked and swept her foot under his feet, causing him to fall.

Luke watched the fight, a little awed by how graceful Danielle was. _It's like he's dancing…_ He looked to Ravi. "Are you alright, bro?" He asked.

Ravi nodded. "I can't believe that's Danny."

"I know, he seems so nerdy and chill, and a bit weak to be honest. I thought he was just like you, only he's from LA and you're from India." Luke added.

Melissa smiled. "Never judge a book by its cover boys. He is pretty amazing."

By the end, all of Bradley's gang were on the floor and Danielle was panting heavily, sporting a bruise across her cheekbone and a bloody lip, she couldn't feel the pain yet, her body was still numb with adrenaline and anger.

"Danny?" Melissa approached her.

Danielle met her eyes. "That was fun." She smiled, she flinched. "Ow!" All the pain hit her at once. "Damn!" She hissed. She accepted the glasses from Melissa and sat down again.

"Danny Adams!" One of the teachers marched towards her. "Violence isn't tolerated in this school!"

Danielle raised her brow. "And bullying is? This was all self-defence, ma'am." She stated.

"That's right, he was only defending me." Ravi piped up.

The teacher looked around at the boys who were getting to their feet. She sighed. "Well, it looks like none of you got seriously hurt, but if I see you causing trouble again, I'll call your parents." She strode off.

Danielle shrugged it off. "She was being too easy on me." She breathed.

"It'll be because you're new." Max stated.

Danielle wiped her nose before looking down at her t-shirt. "That's never coming out…" She pulled at it, inspecting the blood that dripped from her nose onto it. "I'm going to the bathroom." She stood and packed away her things before heading out.

Ravi looked to Luke. "Jessie is going to go crazy." He said.

Luke shrugged. "His problem."

"Luke. Whilst he's with us, we should treat him like one of us. Like our brother."

"He's not my brother." Luke snorted.

Ravi rolled his eyes. "Fine, I'll help him."

Luke stared at his lunch as his brother stormed out of the hall. _Why should I care? It was his fault for getting into an unnecessary fight._


	8. Understanding

Ravi found Danielle desperately trying to scrub the blood from her t-shirt. "Danny…"

She looked up to meet his gaze. "Hey."

"Thank you, for what you did. But you didn't need to." He added, looking at the bruise on her face. "You got hurt."

She chuckled. "I hurt them more I bet."

He laughed too. "Yeah, I'm sure they'll back off for a while at least." He sighed, looking at the mess the shirt was getting in. "Do you want me to see if the coach has some spare t-shirts or something for you to go home in?"

Danielle gave a grateful smile. "If you could?"

He nodded. "Be back soon. Clean your face up."

Danielle looked in the mirror and examined the damage. _Nothing a little makeup wouldn't help._ She sighed going into the stall to get some tissue. She proceeded to clean the blood from her face.

Luke watched Ravi leave the bathroom without Danielle. _He's probably going to get something for him to wear…_ He turned and opened his locker. He looked through his bag for his homework and found his gym shirt, freshly laundered by Jessie. "I don't have gym today…" He looked over his shoulder to the bathrooms. _Damn it!_ He closed his locker and went over.

Danielle splashed her face with cold water and stared at herself in the mirror. _Teen idol? If only the world could see me now._ She suppressed a small laugh. She heard the bathroom door open again. "Ravi?" She looked to see it was actually Luke standing there. "Come to give snide remarks?" She snorted.

"No… I brought you this." He held out his gym shirt. "Ravi told me to give this to you, he had to go do something."

"Oh… thanks for that." She took it and went into a stall to change.

Luke leaned against the sinks waiting for her. "You… sure know how to stand up for yourself."

"I've been taught self-defence for years." She stated, pulling the new t-shirt over her head. _This smell is familiar…_ She shrugged at the thought and stuffed her bloody t-shirt into her bag. She stepped out of the stall and looked to him. "Look okay?" She asked.

Luke nodded. "Yeah, fits you good."

"Thanks." She smiled slightly. "I am gonna find Melissa before class, I don't wanna get lost." She left the bathroom and headed for her locker.

"Danny! Hey!" Emma Ross' voice rang out through the corridor.

Danielle looked over to the girl. "Hey, Emma."

"Guess what?"

Danielle shrugged.

"Ella replied to my comment!" She squealed.

"I'm really happy for you, must be a great honour." She smiled.

"You bet!"

Luke walked over. "She's always nice to her fans."

Danielle looked in her locker to hide a blush.

"She really is my ideal girl." He went on.

"What about Jessie?" Emma asked with a giggle.

"Well… by now, even I have realised that Jessie is way out of reach, considering I've been chasing for a good few years and nothing." He sounded dumbfounded by the very thought.

"Well, she is twenty-two years old for starters, and she's your nanny." Danielle remarked. "Plus, she already has Tony."

"I see it now! That's why… Ella is the one. She's the same age, likes dancing, has the voice of a songbird…"

Danielle tried her best not to cringe. _I didn't think he was this big of a fan._

"Luke, you are forgetting that she is the teen idol of the decade! She is more out of reach than Jessie. At least Jessie is in the same city as you. Ella is bound to find a young, handsome popstar, who has similar dreams and fall in love." Emma went into her own fantasy world.

Danielle face-palmed, closing her locker door.

Emma looked at her properly for the first time. "Danny, what happened to your face?" She asked.

"Nothing much." Danielle replied.

"Well, you're not gonna fool Jessie that it was nothing if we leave it like that." She went to her locker and pulled out her makeup bag. "I'll put some concealer on that bruise at least."

The warning bell sounded. "Okay, well, can you do this after school?" Danielle asked her. "I still haven't found Melissa."

Emma smirked. "Ooh, Melissa? Got yourself a girlfriend on the first day?"

Danielle raised a brow. "I am not Luke… I don't chase every skirt in sight."

Luke huffed. "I don't."

Ravi saw the three talking, holding a t-shirt he had meant to give to Danielle, but he realised that she was already wearing a clean one. His eyes landed on Luke, who was talking to Danielle like a friend. He smiled widely, throwing the t-shirt aside. _Well done, Luke._

"I guess you can follow me to class." Luke sighed.

Danielle met his gaze. "Thanks." She waved Emma goodbye.


	9. Ella Style Makeover

Danielle flopped onto her bed when she had gotten home. "What a day…" She yawned, wincing at the pain in her cheek. She checked her phone, there was no Ella outings that afternoon, so she grabbed her stashed makeup bag and went to Jessie's bedroom.

"Jessie?" She knocked and walked in. "It's me."

Jessie looked around from her mirror. "Danny?" She smiled.

"Let's get your war-paint on." Danielle held up her bag.

Jessie nodded. "Thanks for this." She tied her damp hair back. "I'm gonna wear this." She unhooked a purple dress from the bathroom door to show Danielle.

"It's beautiful!" She awed. "Sit on your bed and I'll get started." She pulled up a chair and placed her make-up bag onto the table.

Jessie sat down, getting a little giddy. _Ella is going to do my make-up!_

Danielle first started with a base of foundation and concealer. She looked at the dress, then at Jessie's face, deciding to do a purple smoky eye look on her.

After about half an hour of work, Danielle finished the look with a sweep of nude lipstick. "Okay, moving onto your hair." She grinned, proud of her work. "Sit on here?" She stood up and picked up the hair dryer.

Jessie did as she was told. "Can I see?"

Danielle laughed. "Not until it is done." She said in a sing-song voice.

Jessie pouted. "Fine." She mock glared at her new charge. She let her hair down and brushed her fingers through it.

Danielle grabbed a round brush and began to blow dry Jessie's auburn hair into loose curls, before pinning it up to one side. She stepped back to admire her work. "Now, the dress." She grabbed it from the hanger and handed it to Jessie. "Put it on looking away from your mirror." She warned as Jessie stood up before she turned around to give her a bit of privacy.

"Okay, I just need you to zip me up." Jessie said.

Danielle did so and squealed as Jessie turned around.

"Can I look now?" Jessie whined.

"Of course."

Jessie stepped in front of her full-length mirror. "Danny…"

Danielle bit her lip. "Don't like it?"

Jessie turned around, grinning from ear to ear. "Are you kidding?! You are amazing, I love it!" She hugged Danielle tightly. "I feel like a princess."

Danielle exhaled. "Can I take a photo for my portfolio? It won't go public I promise." She took out her phone.

Jessie nodded, striking a pose. "This okay?"

"Perfect." She snapped a photo. "Thanks."

"Thank you so much!" Jessie twirled.

"I didn't really have much to do… other than complete a song…" Danielle sighed at the realisation. "An idol's work is never done." She ruffled her short hair.

"It… must be hard." Jessie sat down.

Danielle shrugged. "It's my dream, plus… hard works pays off when you get an audience like this…" She flicked through her phone and found a video she took whilst she was in London. "Also… I'm glad that people think that I'm a respectable role-model for my younger fans."

Jessie smiled widely. "You really are an inspiration." She stood and gave Danielle a hug.

"Alright, I'm gonna get back to my room." She grabbed her bag. "Have a fun night." She winked.

Jessie blushed. "Thanks again."

"No problem." She left Jessie's room before closing the door behind her.


	10. Acceptance

Danielle had her guitar out, trying to complete the song. " _Can you reminisce? / Can you recall, the last time you felt some joy at all? / Or maybe you are so blessed to the point / Where you can't remember anything / The fact that we're right here and now / We take it for granted but that's how /We'll find hope when we need it most / When we realise a miracle!"_ She sighed, jotting down her new material. Her stomach gave a grumble. _Guess I should see what there is for dinner._ She put her book into her drawer.

Luke walked out of his room to see Danielle walking out of hers too. "Danny." He acknowledged.

Danielle nodded her head in response and proceeded to head downstairs.

"Hey, Danny!" Zuri smiled.

"Hey, Zuri. What's gotten you into such a good mood?" Danielle sat next to her at the table.

"Dad's bought us tickets to Ella's concert in Times Square!" She squealed.

"Really?! That's awesome!" Luke exclaimed, sitting down.

"I can't wait to see her live!" Emma added.

Danielle forced a smile.

"You going to be there too?" Ravi asked.

She bit her lip. "I… I'm not her biggest fan, so I probably won't bother."

"What?!" They all stared at her.

"You don't want to go and see Ella? That's insane!" Zuri stated.

"Sorry guys." Danielle shrugged.

Jessie walked into the kitchen. "It's fine if Danny doesn't want to go."

Everyone turned to look at her and their mouths dropped.

"Wow! Jessie, you look stunning!" Emma grinned. "You managed to do your make-up from watching Ella tutorials?"

Jessie blushed. "Kinda." She met Danielle's eyes and smiled.

Danielle smirked triumphantly.

"Well, I have to go and meet Tony in the lobby, so everyone, I want you to behave for Bertram whilst I'm gone." She gave her infamous 'nanny glare' towards Luke.

Luke gave an insulted gasp.

Jessie walked out. "I mean it!" She called.

Bertram placed dinner in front of the kids. "I hope she has a good night." He mumbled. "Whilst I'm stuck with you lot."

Danielle felt her phone vibrate with a notification. _Probably my blog, I should upload a new video before soon._ She sighed, continuing to eat the food before her.

"You were pretty popular in school today, Danny." Emma commented.

"Hmmm?" Danielle looked to her.

"A lot of the girls in my class were going on and on about you after lunch."

Danielle rolled her eyes. "Because I socked the school bully in the nose?"

Emma laughed. "That and… under those ugly glasses, you're kinda handsome."

Danielle coughed a little on her food. "What? Isn't Freckles the good looking, popular one?"

Luke frowned at her a little.

"Well, he was…" Emma giggled. "I think the messy blonde hair, green eyes and cute personally work in your favour."

Danielle stared down at the plate of food in front of her. "I'm not interested in being the girls' object of affection." She stated.

Luke watched Danielle as she pushed away her food.

"I'm going to my room. Thanks for the food, Bertram." She flashed a smile towards the butler.

Luke sighed.

"He's different." Ravi voiced. "He does seem to try everything to avoid attention."

"Except playing hero." Emma put in.

"That was my fault, I should stick up for myself. But that guy bullied Danny in the park too, he had the right to get even."

Luke looked to his brother. "What? I didn't know this."

"Why do you think Danny was covered in mud yesterday? Guys with fighting skills like that aren't likely to trip over their own feet." Zuri face-palmed. "He didn't want to tell you because he was worried that you'd think he's a loser."

"Why would he care what I thought?"

"Because… it seems that he wants to be your friend. You were nice to him when he got here, then cold at school. He thinks it's his fault!" Ravi exclaimed. "Because of your ego, Danny thought that you really hated him, and I think it really hurt him to think that."

Luke was taken aback. "I don't hate him, at all." He stated. "Yeah, I think of him as a rival, and was jealous of all the attention he's getting at school, but I do like him. He's a good guy."

"Then act it! Otherwise, you could be risking a perfectly good friendship with him." Emma folded her arms.

"The way you helped him before proves that you do care about his well-being. But he thought it was me that gave him that t-shirt." Ravi stated.

"And he probably only thinks that you let him follow you to class because Melissa wasn't there, like an obligation." Emma reminded.

"Fine, I'll go and talk to him." Luke stood up and walked out.

Danielle lay on her bed in her black sweats and the sports shirt Luke had given her, thinking what she should post onto her blog. She took off her glasses since she didn't really need them. _Maybe I should shower?_ She checked her watch. _But it mean's I'll panic if someone comes to the door… I'll wait for everyone to go to bed._ She turned over on her bed. She typed in _Kitty-Couture_ into the search bar and Emma's blog popped up. "Wow, she's really dedicated." She hit the follow button. It took her a few seconds to register what she had just done… she, as Ella, just followed Emma's blog. _Well… that's Emma on a high for two weeks now._

There was a knock at her bedroom door that caused her to jump. "Yeah?" She called.

Luke opened the door. "Can I come in?"

"If I said no, would you go away?" Danielle shot back.

Luke closed the door behind him and walked towards her.

"I'll take that as a no." She sat up.

"Danny… I'd like to apologise for today." Luke fidgeted with the hem of his t-shirt. "I was mean and jealous. I really didn't mean any of the hurtful things that I have said."

Danielle tilted her head to try and view him at a different angle. "What?"

Luke sat down on her bed. "I guess, what I'm trying to say is, can we start again?"

"Like… be friends?" Danielle raised her brow.

"Yeah." He looked at his hands.

"I'd like that very much."

His eyes snapped to hers, for some odd reason, he wished he hadn't, because looking away was a little difficult.

"Luke?"

The freckled boy blinked and cleared his throat. "Great!" He smiled. He got comfortable, crossing his legs on her bed. "Why didn't you tell me that Brad had bullied you before?" He cut to the chase.

Danielle shrugged her shoulders. "I was embarrassed."

He sighed. "Well, next time someone bullies you, you can tell me."

She rolled her eyes. "I can deal with them myself."

He nodded. "You've proven that."

She looked down at her bruised knuckles.

"But really, just tell me. I don't like being in the dark about things like that. Like Ravi said, we should treat you like our brother, and nobody hurts my siblings."

She smiled a little. "I'll take note of that."

Luke let out a large sigh. "So… should I do a spider inspection before I leave?" He smirked.

Danielle laughed. "Be my guest."

Luke got up and looked up at the corners of the bedroom before venturing into the bathroom. "All clear!" He called.

"Thank you."

He came back in and spotted the guitar. "You play well, I can here from my room sometimes." He pointed out.

"Oh, really? Thanks." She gripped the cover of her bed. _I hope he doesn't hear me sing as well._

"Well, I'm going to go and play Overwatch now."

"Overwatch? I love that game!" She exclaimed, over excited.

"Hmm… you want to play with me? I could see if you can borrow Ravi's Xbox and we can play as a team?"

Danielle thought for a moment. _I could finish that song after…_ "Yeah if that's alright."

"Of course." Luke tried to suppress a grin. "Come on, we'll set it up in my room since it's bigger." He opened the door.

She nodded, standing up and following him.

Luke knocked on Ravi's door.

Ravi opened it to be surprised by Luke and Danielle standing there… together. "Yes?"

"Ravi, can Danny borrow your Xbox? We wanna play Overwatch in my room."

Ravi stared a little. "Sure! Give me a moment." He smiled, letting them enter his room. _Danny and Luke are going to play video games together? Must mean that Luke apologised!_ He looked to see Danielle entertaining Mrs. Kipling. He continued to unplug his Xbox. "Here you are, do you mind if I come and watch?" He asked, handing the console to Luke.

"If you want to." He replied, leaving Ravi's room.

Ravi looked to Danielle. "Well, it looks like you two are friends again." He patted her back.

Danielle smiled softly. "Yeah, I'm glad."


	11. Guest Coach At Dance Class

Danielle woke up with a start. She looked to her alarm clock. _Already?_ She gave a groan. _I shouldn't have stayed up so long, playing video games._ She jumped out of bed and got ready quickly.

Jessie was sat at the table with Emma, Ravi and Zuri having breakfast. "Is Danny awake? It's almost time for school. I heard Luke get up but not Danny."

"I'll go and check." Zuri got up and ran up the stairs.

Danielle had just finished gluing her wig to her head when she heard a knock on her bedroom door. She checked her appearance in the bathroom mirror before answering it. "Zuri?"

"Morning, Jessie was wondering if you were awake yet."

"Well, I think I am." Danielle smiled, grabbing her backpack and jacket. "C'mon, I'm gonna see what I can wolf down for breakfast before the school bus gets here."

"Danny… don't you wear glasses?" Ravi asked as Danielle sat down.

 _Damn… knew I was forgetting something._ "Um… I'm wearing contact lenses today." She improvised.

"Oh, okay. Makes sense."

Luke walked into the kitchen, yawning. "Man, last night was fun." He sat down.

"What happened last night?" Jessie questioned, raising a brow.

"Luke and Danny played video games. Turns out, Danny is pretty good." Ravi explained.

Jessie smiled. "Really?" She looked to Luke.

Luke shrugged. "He isn't bad."

Emma looked at her phone. "OMG! Ella followed my Kitty Couture blog!"

"That's so cool!" Zuri exclaimed.

Jessie met Danielle's gaze. "That was nice of her."

Danielle winked.

"She must have been busy last night, she didn't post a vlog." Zuri stated.

"Well, she is an idol. She has a lot to do." Ravi suggested.

Jessie checked her watch. "Okay, kids. Bus will be here in five minutes." She stood up.

Danielle met Melissa at the lockers.

"Hey, Danny." Melissa smiled brightly.

"Hi, Melissa. How are you this morning?"

"I'm alright. How's your face?" She asked.

Danielle had forgotten about her minor injuries from the fight. "Oh, yeah, it's okay. I'm still handsome, right?" She winked. _Why did I do that?!_

"True." Melissa giggled. She looked to see Luke approaching them. "Looks like you two get along better." She nodded towards him.

"Uh, yeah, I think so." She paused to yawn.

"Late night?"

Danielle stretched. "You could say that."

A hand clapped upon her shoulder. "He was up all night playing video games with me." Luke grinned.

Melissa laughed. "Well, I'm glad you two have finally clonked your heads together."

Luke met Danielle's gaze and smiled. "Me too."

"Oh, look! It's Danny!" One of the girls from the day before fawned.

"And he looks so cool without his glasses." Another added.

Danielle looked over. "Hey, girls." She waved.

The girls squealed. "Sit with us at lunch?"

Danielle looked to Luke and then back to them. "Tell you what, if you can save a seat for my friend and I, you'll have yourself a deal." She smiled.

They giggled. "Deal!" Then they scurried away.

Luke turned to face her. "How do you do that?!"

Danielle frowned. "What?"

"I've been trying for months to get a seat on their table, and you just give them a smile, them bam!"

She smirked. "Natural charm, I guess."

The warning bell sounded.

"Let's go." Melissa grabbed Danielle by the elbow and led the way to homeroom.

At lunch time.

Ravi walked up to Danielle. "Do you wanna sit together at lunch today, Danny?"

Danielle bit her lip. "I kinda promised to sit next to some girls, I managed to score Luke a seat too."

Ravi chuckled. "That's alright, I guess that's scored you some brownie points with Luke, eh?"

She shrugged.

"I'll see you later." Ravi patted her shoulder. "Have fun."

She turned around and rolled her eyes. _Sure will._

As promised, Danielle sat with Luke and the girls who they met in the corridor.

"So, Danny, do you take self-defence classes?" One girl asked.

Danielle nodded.

"You're not really a talker…" Another remarked.

Danielle sighed. "Sorry, but my friend, Luke here, he loves a good conversation." She elbowed Luke to get his attention.

"Wha...? Oh, yeah. I can talk to you lovely ladies all day." He winked.

The girls giggled.

Danielle's phone rang in her pocket. She checked the caller ID and realised it was 'Ella's' manager calling her, under the name 'Uncle.' "Um… I must take this. I'll see you in class, Luke?" She added, looking to the freckled boy.

He nodded. "Yeah, is everything okay?"

She smiled. "It's my uncle." She grabbed her lunch box and headed out to find a nice remote place to eat and call her manager back.

"Danielle!" Her manager exclaimed. "How are you?"

"I was alright until you called me in the middle of my lunch."

"Yeah, sorry about that. Just wanted to remind you that you are scheduled to show up at the dance class in town, just do a demo and work with them for a bit."

"Why do I need to do that?" She asked with a sigh.

"Publicity, you're known for your good nature and a role model for young teens. Helping some kids dance will emphasise that."

She bit into her apple. "Fine, just message me the time and place, I need an excuse to sneak out too."

"I'm on it. See you later, Danielle." He hung up.

Later that evening, Danielle told Jessie about her work and Jessie managed to sneak her out of the penthouse.

Danielle's manager met her at the gym where they held the dance classes. "Ella!" He smiled. "Have you been enjoying school?" He added in a low voice.

Danielle laughed. "Yeah, it's been fun. I've made a few friends already."

"That's what I like to hear. Come on, the room is this way."

"Okay, Luke I'll pick you up later." Jessie said as she dropped Luke off at the gym.

"Yeah, thanks for the lift, Jessie." He waved at his nanny. He walked inside and spotted a tall man that he somewhat recognised standing at the dance studio's door, as if waiting for someone. _Is he someone's dad?_ Luke shrugged it off and entered the studio.

"So, Ella is here to give us a demo and maybe giving you guys some pointers." The teacher explained.

The class clapped their hands excitedly.

Luke's eyes widened. _Ella?!_ His eyes landed on the teen idol standing next to the teacher.

She was wearing black sweats with a white sports bra and blue zip up hoodie, her golden hair was tied securely into a high ponytail. "Hey, guys. I'm looking forward to be working with you." She looked to the door to see the late arrival and almost choked on her own spit. _Luke?!_ She cleared her throat subtly.

Luke walked over to Max and the rest of his dance team. "I didn't know she'd be here." He hissed.

"This is our chance to get some tips from a pro." Max replied, grinning like an idiot.

The teacher clapped his hands to gain the excited teenagers attention. "I know the contest is next week, so I am going to allow you guys to work on your routines. But that is after, Ella… if you would?"

Danielle blinked out of her thoughts. "Uh, yeah." She took out her iPod and plugged it into the speaker. "This is the backing track to one of the songs I'm working on… I'll show you a quick dance demo." She said, hitting the play button.

The class watched as Danielle effortlessly blended one move into the other.

When she was finished she was met with a round of applause. She bowed her head. "Thank you."

"Alright then, give us a shout if you need any assistance, get practising." The teacher added.

Danielle went over to the bench to grab a drink.

"Um… Ella?"

Danielle looked to see Luke Ross standing, fidgeting with the hem of his t-shirt nervously. "Yeah?"

"Could you… um… watch the routine we have so far and maybe give us some tips to improve?"

Danielle had to bite back a giggle. _He's actually cute when he's all nervous…_ "Yeah, of course." She smiled.

"Thanks!" He went back to his group.

Danielle went over and leaned against a wall to watch. "Show me what you've got."

Luke grinned like an idiot. "Alright, from the top, guys." He hit the play button on the speaker. "5, 6, 7…and!"

They all danced brilliantly, Danielle was really impressed.

Luke finished with a back handspring and they all struck their end poses.

Danielle clapped. "Wow, that was fantastic."

Luke bit his lip. "So… what can we do to improve?"

Danielle cleared her throat. "Well… you guys need to loosen up a little, have a bit of fun with it." She said.

Max frowned. "We are having fun…"

Danielle pursed her lips. "Well… you seem like you're thinking more about the winning rather than the actual dancing. When you think like that you become more ridged, you seem to be forgetting that having fun and expressing yourself is the main thing about performing arts. Whether it's singing, acting or dancing."

Luke stared at her a lot longer than necessary. _She's amazing…_

"I also thing you're trying too hard when it comes to mimicking some of my moves. Make it your own." She looked around the group. "Don't you have any girls in your group?"

"Nah, we don't need any girls." Max laughed.

"Well… having girls dance with you might be fun. You guys are dancing all bold and girls can bring a bit of softness and flare. If you dance together as pairs in the middle of the routine, I think your steps there will match up well with some female input." She took a drink of water. "Am I making any sense? I'm honestly not a good teacher."

"I think that's a great idea." One of Luke's group stated. "But it's getting girls to join and have them know the steps before the dance off."

Danielle looked around the studio and spotted some girls street dancing in the far corner. "What about those girls? There's the right number and they've got some serious moves."

Luke followed her gaze. "Nah, they won't wanna."

"You sure about that?" Danielle smirked and walked over to the girls. "Hey girls!" She gave her brightest idol smile. "How's it going?"

"Not too bad, I don't think we'll be entering in the show though." One girl replied.

"Why not?"

"We're still behind with the routine. Every time we think of something, Luke's crew seem to do one better." She folded her arms.

Danielle put her hand on her him. "This isn't about one upping everyone, it's about having a blast while we're young."

"I know, but we've wanted this for a while."

"Can I make a suggestion?" Danielle asked.

The girl nodded.

"How about… you and Luke's crew team up for the dance off?"

"What?! Us, dance with them?" The girl looked shocked and a little disgusted.

"Do you trust me?"

"Well, yeah. But Luke and his team will never except us. They've come in a high-ranking spot every show." She adverted her eyes from the idol.

"But you know what? I honestly believe that, if you all teamed up, you could come first place."

"You think?"

"Yeah, and they really need some girls in their group."

The girl turned to her group. "What does everyone think?"

Her friends all shared looks before one spoke up. "We have nothing to lose, Katie."

The girl, Katie, turned back to Danielle. "Okay, let's give it a shot."

Danielle grinned. "Yay!" She clapped. "Let's do this!"


End file.
